Madoluwawe Sobita Hamudurwo and the Executive Presidency

Maduluwawe Sobita Hamuduruwo  blinded with glory of being a future President

President Mahinda Rajapakse a President of the People,  thinking of his people and their future

Madoluwaw Sobita Hamudurowa is known for his  Buddhist sermons and not for his political views.  We had monks from JHU , who tried their best to  make political changes  to help people live peacefully in a political environment  appropriate to a Sinhala Buddhist Culture.  These monks of the JHU saw for themselves  how difficult it is to bring about political changes to make Sri Lanka follow Buddhist principles  making it a country where every one  may live together in peace and contentment.  

Unfortunately they could not even pass  legislation against conversion, against cruel meaningless killing of animals at Munneswaram Kali Temple, or even against  consuming of liquor.  However, these Buddhist Monks may have learnt  that they cannot  change the political environment  of the country to make it  a better place for all communities  to live peacefully and in unity by becoming legislators and prepare legislation to correct the ills of the Society.

But they may have learnt that  the Buddhist Monks could  change the people and through them the country by bringing the people closer to Dhamma, encouraging them to live according to the teachings of the Buddha, rather than by becoming legislators and sit in the Parliament.

The Parliament and Legislations cannot change people to do what is right or wrong, but it can pass laws and authorise enforcement authorities to make people do what is legally right and refrain from doing what is legally wrong.

Hence enforcing laws to make people law abiding citizen, and teaching people to understand through Dhamma what is wrong and should refrain from doing,  or  what are  wholesome and worth doing,   are two different things.  Therefore, there are politicians to pass legislations and the Police Force to ensure that the laws are followed.

The Buddhist monks  are there to explain to the followers the teachings of the Buddha and make them understand why one should do what is good and refrain from doing what is wrong. They  should use appropriate methods to bring about that mental change in the people, which they cannot do as politicians.  On the other hand Buddhist monks may advice and give good council to politicians as to how they should use their political power to change society, when the religion has failed to make people understand  what is morally right.

 

Athureliye Ratana Thero  a JHU monk legislator

Therefore,  a learned monk- learned in the teachings of the Buddha, should know by now with the experience the monks of the JHU have had , that being a Buddhist monk, and being a politician are two different vocations one different from the other, each having its own methodology of learning and its application. The politicians deal with the worldly aspect of man and the monk his spiritual aspect. Otherwise it would be like the well known folk tale of the donkey, attempting to replace the dog  to warn the master of thieves.

The sudden talk about a common candidate and some ambitious politician who cannot think straight and unable to think of a  politician who could successfully challenge  the President Mahinda Rajapakse, has thought of  tapping into Buddhist monks and come up with Madoluwawe Sobita hamudurowa as  likely to take more votes than the President Mahinda Rajapakse, or at least split the Buddhist vote to  put the President Mahinda Rajapakse at a disadvantage   at the next Presidential elections, and therefore a more apt common candidate. 

This has apparently gone into the head of Sobita Hamudurowo , who has found it more attractive, and far more easier than seeking enlightenment according to the teachings of the Buddha .  He has therefore thought doing better than the Buddha by becoming the first President of Sri Lanka in a yellow robe !!!  

Madoluwawe Sobita hamuduruwo has left aside the scriptures,  and turned to learn about politics.  He has found that a President without executive powers is more a prestigious decorative position, with the Prime Minister and the Government taking over  the executive powers now vested in the President. Therefore he will have the prestige of being the President of Sri Lanka without having to deal with more onerous duties cast upon an executive President.

Therefore,  we  now have Madoluwawe Sobita Hamuduruwo assuring himself that if he were to be elected at the next presidential election he will be without those bothersome executive duties of which he knows nothing.  He is a “foolish man” momentarily blinded with the glory of the  possibility of becoming a President.

Sobita Hamuduruwo  merely repeats what the other very ambitious politicians of the Opposition who are prepared to sign a MoU with the devil himself if they could defeat the President Mahinda Rajapakse  at the next Presidential election or make the government fall before that eventuality.

Executive Presidency comes from the Constitution of Sri Lanka and without changing the Constitution one cannot do away with the executive powers of the president.  These opposition politicians including  Sobita Hamuduruwo should know that without the executive powers of the President terrorism could not have been eliminated. 

If  the  President Mahinda Rajapakse was without executive powers he would have had to put every military strategy proposed by the Armed Forces in its war against terrorism to the Parliament, and receive its approval before the Armed Forces are informed that they can go ahead with their proposed military operations, while terrorists  would have go on attacking the armed forces  in barracks awaiting Parliamentary approval for action.

With all the manoeuvres of  the diaspora, and planned attempts by Navi Pillai (who is a biased Tamil woman even if she was a former Judge of the International Criminal Court), to disrupt the government and help the Tamil diaspora with the help of the politicians of the TNA to divide Sri Lanka, the  executive powers of the Present President should be retained as long as this danger exists. 

The danger of some of rightist political evolution in Sri Lanka with the backing of the pro terrorist Tamil Diaspora, the USA and its allies ( like  Cameron and Harper depending on Tamil votes  for their political success) to create political chaos in Sri Lanka with the aim of dividing the country,  cannot be ruled out. 

Therefore,  its is only a President with executive powers like President Mahinda Rajapakse who will be able to hold the enemies in check.  Hence talking about abolishing executive Presidency is  foolish without taking into account the local and international  political movements afoot against  Sri Lanka.

Rajiv Gandhi with President J.R.Jayawardhane

President J.R.Jayawardhana misused his executive powers in signing the Indo-Sri Lanka Pact and including the 13A into the Constitution forcing the MPs to vote in favour of the Amendment, which has caused all the problems we are bewildered with at present.

President JR Jayawardhane and Rajiv Gandhi signing the Indo Lanka Pact

President R.Premadasa became an intolerable despot eliminating his opponents, and arming the terrorists without consulting the Parliament.

President R.Premadasa who armed terrorists against indian Peace Keeping Force

President Chandrika Kumaratunga was weak. She was unable to use the executive powers of her Presidency, thus allowing  her Prime Minister Ranil Wichramasinghe sign a CFA with the terrorist leader Prabhakaran  without consulting the  elected President of the country or the Parliament.

President Chandrika Kumaratunga a weak President who allowed her PM to sign a CFA with Terrorist leadha Prabhakaran behannd her back  and without consulting the Parliament

On the other hand President Mahinda Rajapakse has utilised the Executive power vested in him meaningfully, to eliminate terrorism  and then for  a constructive development of the country in various ways. No one in the opposition or in the Government could point his finger at  President Rajapakase for  abusing the executive powers vested in him.

President Mahinda Rajapakse is not a power greedy man.  He is insightful and takes appropriate action for the welfare of his people and the country whatever his adversaries make him out to be.   All these critics of the President Mahinda Rajapakse have forgotten that it is thanks to him that they are able today to open their big mouths to speak against the President and address meetings without the fear of being blown into pieces. 

President Rajapakse with Sarath Fonseka a rival candidate

There are those who want him to loose at the next Presidential election and a former Chief Justice who helped the terrorists to bring bombs to the south by ordering the removal of check points, swear that the President Mahinda Rajapakse cannot contest the Presidential election  for the third time or hold portfolios on more than two occasions.

 

President Mahinda Rajapakse with former CJ Sarath N Silva

While the Sri Lanka Opposition parties are all out to see the end of the Presidency of Mahinda Rajapakse, the country is peaceful, the development projects are taking Sri Lanka to an unimagined prosperity, with a remarkable economic progress.  Normal political, economic and social  problems any country would be faced with are being exaggerated by the opposition to the government,  anti-Sri Lanka Tamil diaspora and their vote seeking USA and its allies. 

 

truely a peoples President

Nevertheless, the country and its people are content that they have at the helm of Sri Lanka an able President who has shown his ability to handle all problems at his own pace, unruffled and with patience. May he go from success to success despite all the barriers put on his way. Because his failure would be the  is failure of  all the people of Sri Lanka.